Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's Director in trouble with the Unions, again

Ed Boks' email: "Why is PETsMART (sic) so intent on trying to embarrass LA City? Why is it so difficult to give credit where credit is due? Honest business sense would dictate partnering with LA City, not dismissing LA's efforts. Unless of course the plan here is to be the Johnny come lately to take credit for what LA City has been doing for 37 years. If that were the case, then shame on you... So who at PETsMART is trying to rewrite history and undermine LA's long term commitment to creating a humane community? Quite frankly, I find it offensive that an organization committed only to making a profit on the backs of pet owners is also trying to create the illusion that they have humane motives…"

I almost don't know where to begin. He should be sending a "thank you" email but instead attacks the charity that is helping him? Does he fear they are trying to "steal his thunder?" Euthanasia has increased 37% under his direction. Shelter conditions have deteriorated since he arrived. Three times as many animals are dying from illness and injury suffered in their cages. Los Angeles desperately needs the help. Maybe he feels it's a slap in the face. He was supposed to open the City's own spay/neuter clinics but after almost three years they still sit closed.

Perhaps Mr. Boks is under a little bit of stress. Last week the LA Times and Daily News reported that over 200 employees and rescuers went to a special LA City Personnel Committee meeting to demand that he be fired. Union leader Victor Gordo said the Union was recently forced to file an unfair labor practice against Boks because of his outrageous behavior. They claim he retaliated against employees for complaining about him to the Mayor and City Council. Councilmember Zine arranged the Personnel meeting after employees recently complained in City Council.

At the Personnel Committee meeting employee after employee came forward with reports of bizarre behavior from Ed Boks. The meeting had to be cut short after 3.5 hours of testimony and will be continued. Video and audio is available on the City website at http://www.lacity.org/cdaudio_wm.htm Click October 7, 2008 Personnel meeting.

Union leaders Julie Butcher and Victor Gordo spoke for their Unions. Gordo said "We tried to work with management of this Department as individual Unions and collectively. We've met with him, not withstanding his communication (saying we didn't). This is unprecedented for this many members of the Union and others (members of the animal rights community) to stand up and say 'we've had it.'. We can't bear to watch animals being treated this way by management policies and procedures. We've been treated poorly. Residents aren't getting services they paid for and are entitled to. We ask that you take an interest on behalf of animals, employees and consituents. These are Department wide concerns, concerned equally with animal rights and employee safety. Animal welfare is at stake here. I've worked with nine General Managers of Animal Services. We've never been this united (against one)."

Gordo continued, "Warehousing is not acceptable. Dog runs made for one to two dogs. They put seven in the runs. More dog fights, employees have to break up the fights. It's dangerous. Misleading data has been handed to you. We want more than just PR. All we've gotten is poor judgement and retaliation. In the letter sent to you by the General Manager he said only a handful of people disliked him. You saw at Council that is not the case. It's Department wide. His September 9th letter said we didn't try to work with him. That's incorrect, misleading. In Boks' own emails it shows that we tried to resolve these issus with him. I question the veracity of his statements and the data given to council. We're tired of mismanagement, poor judgement, misleading data. He is not responsive to you, services are poor, the animals are being endangered. They are an equal danger to public safety. We have a management team who is not leading and employees can't follow. Please, take this seriously. We are frustated. We cannot follow someone who isn't leading."

Employee Linda Gordon a 31 year Department veteran talked about Boks retaliation after she'd complained about him to the Mayor's office. She said she was ostracized. Gordon said "I sit in a cubby hole, a corner somewhere. No one talks to me. If I die, hopefully the cleaning crew will find my body and haul me out." She said "Boks has failed. He sees law enforcement as a burden. He's lied to City Council, the public. He can't see the suffering of the warehoused pets. He thinks only about public relations, writing on his blog and photos ops. He blames his inability to lead on his staff. Boks degrades and intimidates employees. There is total lack of leadership, an atmosphere of fear and intimidation on a daily basis."

Ex-Commander and 18 year veteran David Diliberto came forward to speak. Diliberto stated he "left the Department on stress leave." He was a board member of the Animal Directors Association. "The day after I went on stress leave, instead of Ed Boks calling up and seeing how I was doing, he called the Animal Directors Association and asked them to fire me and give him (Boks) my position. The Association refused and Boks still isn't on the Board," stated Diliberto. Diliberto went on to say that "Boks claimed existing programs as his own. He took credit for programs already in the works or nearly completed. He never gave credit where it was due. I worked on the opening of the new shelters for five to seven years. I wasn't even invited to the grand opening." Diliberto now works for the police department.

Ex-Commissioners Marie Atake and Laura Beth Heisen both spoke out against Boks. Commissioner Atake stated she brought up these problems with Boks with Deputy Mayor Jimmy Blackman. Blackman told her to "shut up or else (be fired)." She resigned instead. Commissioner Heisen handed over large binders of evidence against Boks. She said the "Department has a series of old programs with new names, some are not even operational. The new Mission shelter sits unused, none of the spay/neuter clinics are operating." She reminded the Committee of Boks past fiascos, e.g. "the Hooters for Neuters" event which had to be cancelled because it drew so much negative press, the Pitbull Academy Boks started with ex-cons without any approvals, Boks endorsing political candidates on the City's website violating campaign law, the recent embarrassing Department audits and misstatements to the public about the true kill rates.

Employee William Transell got up and spoke about Boks' letter to City Council. In that letter Boks stated that only a handful of employees disliked him. Transell pointed out that 30/32 supervisors signed the letter or 98% of the supervisors. "That is not a handful" he said. In total over half of all employees signed that letter.

Union leader Gordo pointed out that Boks said in that same letter that none of the employees ever met or spoke to him about problems. Gordo said the union leaders and employees did indeed meet with Boks to talk about the problems yet Boks denies such a meeting ever took place. Many employees came forward calling Ed Boks a liar over and over.

Employee Mirabelle Martinez got up to read a statement by Officer Dancy. She said "All Boks, Barth and Davis do is play a numbers game. Animals in our care are in dangerous conditions. Boks said he'd make the City "nokill." Instead he's increased euthanasia by 37%. He flip flops between warehousing to avoid euthanasia and euthanasia to avoid warehousing. It doesn't help animals get out alive but it does stroke the ego of Ed Boks. The shelters are a ticking time bomb. He's on a fast downward spiral out of control."

Employee Patricia Ott said "Boks told me to take feral cats and get them acclimated in the LAPD stations. I told him we can't support that because there can't be more than three cats at each address legally. Then he pulled me off the program." She continued "Boks says we are 95% nokill yet we killed 100 kittens in a month (in just one shelter)."

Employee Kathy Mooney an employee with the Department for 29 years talked about Boks' statistics. Mooney is in charge of the raw data. She said "nokill is an impossibility. Boks does not include sick, injured, behaviorally unsuited animals in his numbers. That is what he's using to call LA 'nokill.'" She said she "believed the raw data to be mostly correct but Boks' interpretation of the numbers is completely misleading, a fabrication."

Mooney continued, "I've been punished already for questioning the numbers. Barth took action against me. It was uncalled for. I feel I cut my own throat by coming here today. Because of what they've done to me, I'll be retiring early in five months. I can't stay now."

After three hours of negative testimony Councilmember Zine asked if anyone had anything positive to say about Boks. Rita Gorman said "Yes. Boks has brought us all together (employees and rescuers). We are now very close." No one spoke up for Ed Boks. Ed Boks previously sent a letter to Zine saying he would not be able to attend the meeting.

Captain Nancy Moriarty got up and said "The Department is not prepared for an emergency. A female employee died at the Harbor shelter (because) we had no heart machine (defibulator)." Zine asked "is this the worst the Department has been?" Mortiarty responded "yes." Zine then asked "would you say the Department is running on auto-pilot?" Moriarty said "it is running by employees, rescue groups and volunteers (only)."

Employee after employee recounted acts of retaliation by Boks, humiliation, public embarrassment, Boks asking employees to break the law and overcrowd shelters. Councilmembers Cardenas and Zine were both responsive to the Union members and employees. While noting that they had no power to fire Ed Boks, they said they will be presenting a full report to the Mayor. Zine stated that only the Mayor can hire or fire a General Manager. They can only confirm appointments. Councilmember Parks did not make the meeting.

Ed Boks met again with Union members and the Mayor's office yesterday to discuss the problems. Results of that meeting are not yet available. Will Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa fire Ed Boks? Or will he continue to support his out of control Department head? A better question would be why is the Mayor still supporting Ed Boks after almost three years of very public problems.